Exchange of Goods and Services
by eternalite
Summary: An aspiring summoning student is asked to complete a simple first quest, only for things to go horribly wrong. M-Human/F-Latias


I've never written a lemon before... Read and review, I guess.

* * *

The golden sun glared down upon the lands of Gaia, painting over the nightly cold of the continent with shades of torridity. Today, the sun focused its efforts on making the Mira Region miserable. It was an intensely hot day, with the sweltering heat convincing all but the hardiest humans and monsters from hiding away from its sultry gaze.

For Marcus, however, the day was hot in a different way. Today would be the day of beginnings. In a few hours, he would be learning the ropes to the sacred art that wound their world together. Today, his heated quest would begin, which would get hotter with each passing day. However, unlike the others, Marcus would refuse to swelter. He would enter the furnace unrefined, and come out as steel.

Marcus was ready for his training.

Or at the very least, he would give it his all. Summoning only began to be realized just two centuries ago. Just a decade after that did they decide to start teaching everyone the profession. By now, learning summoning was mandatory in Mira.

Marcus didn't know too much about the field itself. The act of 'summoning' implied that something was instantiated. Marcus had always wondered what this 'something' was. He hoped that this Alvern person would shed some light on his questions.

The main dirt road split off into a simple stone path leading up to the large monolith of a tower. Its unfathomable shadow was only matched by its even more unfathomable height. The tower itself appeared to evolve from the path, being made up of it as well. By its appearance, it seemed to have dared time to test it for ages now.

Marcus would have taken some more time to appreciate the size and age of the tower had the sun's blazing stare convinced him otherwise. Upon reaching the coolness of the shade, his staggered walking began to cease. Not a single bead of sweat occupied his face. Nor did the young man experience any other of the symptoms of heatstroke.

A convenient cold ward absorbed most of the excess temperature, exchanging the fever of the heat for a fever of the mind. The sheer mental powers it took to manage the spell were excruciating. Marcus's ego led him to believe that his afflictions were not caused by his ineptitude, but rather from the sheer amount of energy he had to purge from his environment.

After being freed from the star's sight, Marcus silently whispered an incantation to remove the cooling spell he had placed upon himself a few minutes earlier. The dizziness that had occupied his head soon gave way to clarity.

Some clarity, at least.

What remained of the mental exhaustion was a small tingle at the back of his head. A few deep breaths and that was gone as well. Marcus took a few more moments to compose himself, and ready himself for the individual he would soon meet. The tower in front of him was home to one of Gaia's former greats—the Grand Summoner Alvern. Out of the many rumors that befuddled this man's identity, his status as one of the veterans of the Cygnus War stood out the most. It was this criterion that drew Marcus to Alvern—a summoner devoted to coexistence between humanity and monsters.

Marcus approached the wooden doors of the building and knocked. The sounds of footsteps on stone floor began quietly, before gradually becoming louder. The noise then ceased.

Marcus swallowed his anxiety. _So this is where my journey to become a summoner begins…_ he thought to himself as he stared at the closed door. It would be opening any second now.

On almost a cue, the doors suddenly split open, revealing a man of at least thirty years of age. The man's crimson eyes and black hair identified himself as the summoner he was assigned. The man glanced at a paper in his possession, before looking at Marcus, and then looking at the paper again.

"Marcus, isn't it? You must be the summoner the council assigned to me. You should probably come in." Alvern opened the doors slightly more, and gestured for Marcus to enter. "You can just call me Alv, for short."

* * *

"Well, here's floor five of eight."

Alvern introduced the room the same way as the other floors below as the pair climbed the stairs. Both of them were breathing heavily, exhausted at the sheer amount of work it took to navigate the tower. Each set of stairs seemed to be longer than the last.

Upon reaching the end of the stairs that led to the fifth floor, Marcus began to hear heavy breathing. _Monstrous_ heavy breathing. After he reached the top, a look at the center of the room determined the source of the noise.

A monster. A green dragon with red-covered eyes and rhombus wings had made its sleeping quarters on a thick rug, napping on its stomach. Its green antennae twitched as Marcus climbed the last step, before lowering to the back of its neck. Each breath revealed its teeth and fangs—ready to tear apart or venomously pacify some poor unsuspecting creature.

Alvern seemed to pay no attention to the giant insect as he led Marcus to the opposite side of the room, making sure to orbit around the beast in the room as to not disturb it from its slumber. A giant map was stuck to the wall at this end. Alvern moved up closer to the parchment to examine it, ignoring the sounds of the beast's slumber. Marcus looked closer as well. It was a map of Gaia.

The dragon sleeping bothered him. Marcus was eager to ask about the donphan, or rather, the flygon in the room, but decided against it. Alvern's actions—or lack thereof had to have meant that he had something planned, and that this was not just some sort of bug infestation.

"I hope you're not expecting anything too dangerous or life-threatening for your first task as rookie..." Alvern seemed to be slightly disappointed with the errand he was about to assign to him. Closing his eyes, he let out a short sigh, almost in disgust for whatever he was about to say.

"I'll do whatever it takes!" Marcus exclaimed. After months of inaction, anything would have sufficed for his very first mission as summoner-in-training. "What do you need me to do, eh? Deliver a parcel? Pick up some soul dust? Fight that dragon thing in the mid-"

"Well, actually, we're just gonna pick up some reagents first," Alvern interjected. He pulled a paper scroll out of his pocket. One swift motion of the two hands that held it unraveled the long list of materials that were needed. "First thing on the list are dragon scales. A couple hundred of 'em."

Alvern turned his attention back at the map on the wall. "Now, in order to get these scales, we'll have to…" Alvern's words began to trail off in Marcus's head as he drew his own conclusion.

_So that's the purpose of the flygon! For the scales!_ Marcus reasoned.

Alvern needed to say no more. Marcus unsheathed the steel dagger he had kept on himself for defensive purposes up until now. He looked down and stared intently at the deadly weapon now in his shaking hands. He took a few gentle steps closer to the dragon, trying not to wake it. His eyes still focused downward towards the floor—on the metal tool that could take lives. He had never killed anyone before, but he would perform the necessary evil if needed.

The sudden inclusion of a three-clawed foot in his upper peripheral vision on the floor violently shot his head back up with fear. Eyes widening, Marcus stared into the chitinous chest of the beast. The beast's arms were crossed over its chest, terminating in three digits and claws for each paw, much like its feet. Looking further upwards, he gazed into the beast's face and disturbing toothy grin. Marcus could not tell which was more intimidating—the monster's natural weapons, or its invisible eyes.

"Why stop? I thought you were going to kill me." A sudden feminine voice seemingly came from nowhere, objecting to his former advance in a mocking tone.

The sudden sound startled Marcus into falling backwards on his rear. The dagger flew out of his hands, landing on the floor in front of him, just close enough to the dragon to deter its retrieval permanently.

Marcus had thought that the voice had come from Alvern, but Alvern had somehow disappeared in the minor span of time Marcus had spent sneaking up to the beast. Through some process of elimination, Marcus deduced the voice to be coming from the flygon. Marcus had almost forgotten that some monsters could speak human.

One of the apex predators of the desert was now standing right in front of him. The sheer terror of the situation put Marcus in a daze, making him unable to speak. The beats of his heart began to crescendo as he began to regret ever approaching the sleeping dragon. In his sight, a knife flew towards his dominant hand before placing itself in his grasp.

At the same time Marcus had begun to contemplate his life decisions, the flygon had picked up his weapon, moved closer towards him, and weaved it into his hands.

"What's wrong? Don't you want to continue?" The dragoness smirked and began to giggle at his indecision, satisfied with the terror instilled in the poor student. "Or are you too scared to take a life?"

"I'm not a murderer." Marcus changed his mind and raised his hands in surrender. His right hand still gripped the knife. The hammer in his chest began to calm and he dropped the blade onto the floor. "Killing monsters is wrong. I won't do it."

"Of course you won't." The flygon gleefully replied. She continued to smile at him.

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"Because…" The flygon moved even closer towards the disarmed student with her fangs bared. Her left paw raised upwards away from her body, as if she was prepared to bring it down for the kill. Marcus could see a crazed look on her face. "You're going to die right here!"

A deep blue aura surrounded her left paw before molding itself into three claw-like components, augmenting her actual claws. Marcus identified the ability as Dragon Claw in his fear induced state.

"B-but killing people is wrong too!"

The flygon seemed to pay no attention to Marcus's amendment to his morals. The crackling claw-like energies gradually reached their peak length of triple their original size.

A short deliberation between fight or flight convinced Marcus to run for his life. He made a dash for the stairs leading upwards, trying his not to trip and seal his fate. The sound of draconic feet slamming the ground behind him was more than enough motivation for him to escape faster.

_Fifth step, sixth step, seventh step, I'm almos-_

"Huh? What are you running from?"

A barrier was in front of him. Specifically, Alvern was in front of him carrying down a basket of scrolls. He seemed to take no notice to the danger right on his tail behind him. Alvern stared at Marcus in bewilderment with an eyebrow raised as he walked past him to the floor below, his focus remaining on Marcus. The large creature moved towards Alvern as he stepped downstairs. Alvern was beginning to struggle with the large container. The flygon sensed his difficulties and picked up the basket, moving it without burden by herself to its destination below.

_Is… is she helping him carry it down?_ Marcus didn't know what was more shocking: Alvern's lack of panic over the dragon that just threatened to kill him, or the fact that the dragon just helped Alvern perform some labor.

"Well, there seems to be nothing to be afraid of down here…" Alvern again seemed to be disappointed as he scanned the floor for anything troubling.

"B-but… t-the… flygon…" Marcus nervously responded, gesturing towards the issue at hand. He was unsure if he was wasting time by just staying immobile in the stairway.

"Linda…" Alvern began to put two and two together. He took a deep breath as he figured out why his student was acting weird. "…have you been terrorizing our student?"

"Marco started it." The flygon spoke as if she was offended. Her arms crossed over her chest. She was unable to hide the smirk still on her face. "And I only acted in self-defense."

"So you couldn't have just told him, 'Hey, I'm Linda, I'm Alvern's personal summon, nice to meet you'?" Marcus sighed. Something told Marcus that this wasn't the first time this has happened.

"Where's the fun in that?" The dragon countered with what she thought was a legitimate reason.

The casual conversation between man and monster convinced Marcus resolved to go back down the stairs. Alvern had some explaining to do, after all.

* * *

"So… basically, summoners summon monsters, and for you, and 'Linda' is your familiar?" Marcus clarified. His body quaked as his lingering question was laid to rest.

"Yeah, that's pretty much it. Funny thing is, monsters, dragons especially don't like giving their real name. For example, Linda's actual name is-"

"Don't tell him!" Linda bellowed. "A dragon's true name is sacred." She stood up, disgusted with the conversation. Her wings folded neatly towards her back as she turned her head towards the upper stairs.

"Why am I not sleeping right now?" She grumbled to herself.

Linda walked slowly towards the stairs for some seclusion to sleep. A single foot found its way to the first step as she began her slow ascension.

"Actually, Linda, I was actually hoping you'd help our student with his first task." Linda stopped her ascension with a groan. Her head turned around to face him again.

Marcus had almost forgotten about the task Alvern was going to assign for him for the first day. Something about hundreds of dragon scales. Alvern pulled a single scroll out of the basket he carried from upstairs. Unraveling it revealed a map labeled with numerous symbols Marcus had never seen before. If anyone else looked at the map, they would probably see the symbols as misprints, but Marcus felt as if the symbols meant something. _Perhaps in the monster language?_ He hypothesized.

Alvern moved a finger under the four black glyphs that seemed to title the map. "Shimmer Desert, as we ordinary people call it, located in the bottom part of Gaia. Linda would have you believe that this place is called 'Viim'." His finger then moved towards the edge of the desert. "Now, right next to these mountains that border Shimmer and Vern, is Klostrun, where Queen Lana has her shipment of dragon scales. You are to pick up this shipment."

Alvern seemed to bring out more questions than questions. Questions that Marcus would have asked had an emerald paw not strike down on Alvern's shoulder, grabbing the summoner's attention. Linda had crept up towards Alvern during his short geography lesson.

"So Marcus needs to pick up some stupid scales. Why do I have to help him out?" Linda demanded.

"Well Linda, you sorta know the Shimmer region more than I do. In fact, the only reason that I know this place even exists is because you pointed it out to me." Alvern played along. "Not only that, but the latias is only handing us reagents because you're BFFs with her somehow. Also, if anyone is the best at traversing the desert and fighting off whatever lurks there, it would be a flygon, which you are. Or maybe a Garch-"

Linda cut him off, pleased with the praise. "Fine, I'll go with Marco to Klostrun. But only because you asked me."

"My name is _Marcus_."

"I'll call you whatever I want." Linda asserted. "Human names all sound alike, anyways."

_How do these two live together…?_ Marcus speculated.

"So, uhh… how are we going to get to this Shimmer place?"

"You're not riding on my back, that's for sure."

"Conveniently, there's a teleport pad right at the entrance of Klostrun, and one on floor eigh-H-Hey!" Linda had picked up her summoner. Alvern fought against her grip momentarily before he gave up. "Sometimes I wonder why I even have legs."

Linda and Alvern led the way upstairs as Marcus followed the pair to the teleportation room.

A few shelves adorned this room. Emblazoned on the stone floor was a circle of magical runes that supposedly held the key to teleportation. Marcus and Linda both entered the circle, gravitating towards the center.

Alvern took out a bucket labeled 'Shimmer Sandstone' out of one and tossed a fraction of its contents into the center of the circle. He seemed to take immense care in not stepping within its runic boundaries. The runes seemed to light up and produce a humming sound.

"Are you sure this is safe?" Marcus seemed to be shaking.

"Teleportation pads are a funny thing." Alvern conveyed in a calm manner. "There's a one hectometer margin of error of where you might end up."

"Margin of error? What do you mean?" Marcus cocked his head in curiousity.

"As in, when you come out from the other side, you might end up one hundred meters not at the exit pad, underground maybe, or in the air. It's pretty safe otherwise."

"Oh! I forgot the bag of money! I'll be right back. Linda, reassure him." Alvern commanded before he walked down the stairs. The humming noise got louder with each passing second.

"I teleported into a person once."

"Really? What happened?"

"Poor adventurer girl never saw it coming. Exploded into a shower of bloody bits." Linda seemed unfazed by her gory recollection of the event. "Took a good number of hours in the lake for me to clean up."

_That's horrible!_ Marcus felt nauseous. "You know, I'd be happy to just walk to Shimmer to avoid all these issues with teleporting…" He moved out of the center of the circle, ready to bring a foot over the runes to escape this deathtrap. He felt two arms suddenly grab him from behind and lift him off the ground by his underarms, pulling him back towards the middle of the circle. "Let me go!"

"I'm saving your life, moron." Linda kept Marcus pinned up in the air, ignoring every struggling motion to keep him from moving.

"…and how so?" Marcus demanded. He continued to move his arms and legs around to no avail, trying to escape her iron grasp.

"If any part of your body sticks out of the circle when this thing randomly activates in the next minute, it's not coming with you," Linda explained.

"But what if this thing activates before Alvern gets back?!"

"Then that's too bad, I suppose."

The humming noise now became impossible to ignore. Marcus could feel the ground underneath him shaking. The runes that were dim now shined with white light as the tower's foundation itself seemed to be convulsing from an earthquake. Marcus saw flashes in his vision, each one more blinding than the next one. A final alabaster burst in his view was accompanied by a loud whoosh that traveled from one ear to the next. In the last few moments of his existence at the keep, Marcus felt weightless, and no longer felt the hard stone floor beneath him. Then, he couldn't feel his body.

He felt nothing. He was nothing.

He was no longer at Alvern's tower.

Footsteps reverberated through the stone keep as Alvern made his way back to the teleportation room with a bag of wealth to exchange for the scales. "Hey! I got the money for the… Oh." Alvern looked into the now empty room. The sand he threw earlier into the circle was now gone. "Well, I'm sure Lana will understand and just trade the scales for something else!" he spoke into the air. It felt strange to be talking out loud for no one to hear.

A flier was in the center of the teleportation pad. Sometimes mail was sent with the pad. Other times truly dedicated merchants would teleport advertisements to these circles. Alvern retrieved the paper with no hesitation. The circle only activated if material from the destination area was present within its boundaries.

_Dragon's Heat Festival today at Klostrun…_ Today marked the beginning of the dragon mating season.

_I'll have to find Linda a mate some time this week too… This should be interesting._

* * *

Another white burst, and Marcus phased back into existence. Grains of white sand below him cushioned his fall. He took some time to examine his surroundings. Or at least, he would of if he had the time. The sand was at an incline, and gravity's hand abducted him downwards towards the center of a dome shaped pit. The pit was just high enough to prevent Marcus from seeing out of it. A desperate attempt to climb out of the depression, spurred on by a basic instinct to live, ended in failure. Every step Marcus would attempt to take to escape the pit was met with an insecure foothold. The pit itself seemed to be made for the exact purpose of trapping a hapless victim.

_How am I going to get outta here…?_ Marcus started to panic. _Linda can get me out of here! But wait… where's Linda?!_ He had almost forgotten that he was accompanied there with a monster that was the difference between life and death.

_Oh god, if Linda doesn't find me… or doesn't want to find me, I'm done! But Alvern would look for me if I didn't come back, right?! But he won't be suspicious for a few more hours… And I didn't bring any water! I'm going to die here, aren't I?_ Marcus thought. The grains beneath him began to rumble. Something, or someone was below him. It then felt as if a bomb went off underneath. By instinct, his hands shielded his eyes from the tiny bits of sandy shrapnel. In the gaps between his fingers, he could see a flygon. An orange insectoid monster had clamped its massive jaws on the flygon's middlemost tail fan.

"Argh!" Linda yowled in pain. "Do you know who you're trying to make a meal of, stupid bug?" Linda turned and looked down to face the sand pit monster, still attached to her tail. An aggressive growl tore from her throat as she glared menacingly at the orange bug. The monster shrieked in fear before releasing the fan. Marcus could hear a hum as the creature began to vibrate at a high frequency, melting into the sands below and disappearing.

"Dumb trapinch ought to know their place." Linda sat down and brought her tail forward, gripping it with one of her paws to examine it.

"You were one once, you know…?"

"When I was a trapinch I didn't go around acting all high and mighty and…" She examined her central tail fan, which was now torn in the center. "…biting rhombi off of poor flygon's tails." Without a moment of hesitation, she tore the offending part off. A bluish ichor oozed out of the part that once connected fan to tail.

Marcus was taken aback.

"What? It'll grow back like new in a few days," she reassured.

Marcus brushed his revulsion aside. "How are we gonna get out?"

"I'll fly you out."

Marcus managed to get a single hand on the flygon's back before she objected.

"What the _fuck_ do you think you're doing?!" she angrily questioned.

"You just told me that I could-"

"As in, I pick you up and flap my wings to fly." Linda was dead set on flying with a passenger her own way. "A dragon's back is-"

"Let me guess, _sacred._" he interrupted.

"You seem to know me _very_ well, human." Linda was pleased.

Saying no more, she grabbed Marcus in the same way she had restrained him earlier and began to flap her wings.

"You're gonna want to close your eyes." Each flap of her wings brought the sand swirling in every direction.

In a few moments, Marcus was off the ground and ascending from the pit. The pit was shallow, denying Marcus the true feeling of flight. A few seconds, and Marcus was set on the ground outside of the pit. He glanced at the afternoon sun. He still had plenty of time to complete his task.

"So, how long is the walk to Klostrun?" Marcus looked around, unable to see a city anywhere. He hoped it wouldn't take too long. Afternoon would become sunset in the blink of an eye.

"Look behind you, idiot."

"Oh."

Marcus turned around to witness a massive barrier. A sandstone wall continued for what seemed forever from the left and right. Its height continued the trend. Even after tilting his head ninety degrees, he still could not see the walls terminate skyward.

If Alvern's tower was a monolith, then this thing was a mountain range.

A featureless ebon iron gate gave entrance into the fortified town. It too, extended towards the sky, but to a lesser degree. Marcus could actually see where it ended. Still, the gate could have accommodated giants, titans even, if fully open. A cleft in the gate was all that was needed to allow any normal-sized person or monster to enter the walled city of Klostrun.

He neared the imposing gate. A single monster stood at the entrance, blocking it. It didn't take long for him to figure out why a single weaponless sentinel was enough.

It was built to be a predator. Rough dark blue scales covered the beast head-to-toe, terminating in the front with an equally armored red underbelly. Where there should have been hands, were instead two ivory spears. In addition, five razor sharp fins covered the monster—two right before its spears, one on its back, and two adorning its thick tail. Its visage was the most threatening. For eyes, two unwavering gold-colored irises were surrounded by black death. Below that, jagged triangular daggers festooned its maw.

Marcus stayed close to Linda as the two approached the guardian. Linda's protection seemed to be unneeded today, however, as the creature remained docile. Without a word, the guard moved aside to allow the pair entrance to the city. Marcus breathed a sigh a relief as still he kept close to the flygon. If the bouncer reconsidered, it would have to go through a flygon first. The monster's terrifying eyes remained on Marcus as he passed through whilst the rest of its body remained a statue. Soon, he entered the cleft, and the ordeal was over.

The two continued to walk through the gatehouse. Sand became road as the light behind Marcus shifted to the front. A tiny spark was all he could see of the city, growing larger with time. The walls were not just infinite towards the skies and the sides, but inwards as well.

A bright burst of sun's glow welcomed Marcus to Klostrun.

* * *

The city looked like any other at first glance, even with typical bustling city sounds. At second glance, one would notice the lack of any human life. Monsters of all types roamed the streets, some on all fours, some on two, and some on none at all. Two lines of shops, or perhaps houses, blocked Marcus from moving anywhere but forward, leading to a plaza. He could see a few alleyways here and there between the buildings for an alternative getaway. Of course, where there were alleys, there would also be crime. If human muggers and thieves were deadly, then monster criminals were surely deadlier. Marcus opted to follow his nonhuman partner and move forward towards the city square.

The monstrous denizens of the city seemed be indifferent to the very different human visiting their city. Looking around, Marcus could see why. A girl slept while being carried by a zoroark. An aerodactyl flew through the streets with a human rider. A man dressed in white desert garb sold herbs alongside a kangaskhan. Humans lived alongside monsters here without strife. Everywhere Marcus could see was coexistence between humans and monsters. The discipline of summoning itself seemed to share the city's will—a cordial bond between man and monster.

Far away from central Gaia, Shimmer seemed to be free of the bloody shadow that surrounded the Asmi-Kaus-Saiph mainland in its conflict between differences. The combat in Cygnus, long thought to have ended, merely moved overseas. Wars had ravaged their lands, be it between human and monster, or civil conflicts. With summoning's entrance came thoughts of treachery in both realms—creating a third faction to the carnage. The Mira Region was in the distant bloodless light. Alvern and Linda's unity-despite-differences proved that Klostrun's peace could be spread to other regions on the continent. The populations in Mira had become integrated with the growth of summoning.

"Do you and Alvern come here often?"

"Daily. Klostrun's a nice place. Good food. Has a nice arena too for sparring." She looked at the ground, trying to recall a number. "Alvern's lost to me 47 times in a row so far." She concealed a smug grin as she looked ahead, never looking back at Marcus as she spoke.

"How?" Marcus couldn't imagine a summoner of such high skill on a losing streak.

"Conjured swords just can't compete with claws," she answered.

"He fights with a _sword_?"

"He used to be a swordsman before he recovered me." She stopped moving for a moment. "But don't get the wrong idea! He's still good." She realized her implications.

"Recovered?" Marcus thought Linda was nonchalant with her delivery of interesting information.

"You know, like grave robbery, but you bring them back to life instead, denying them the peace of death with their beloved."

"Back to life?!" Now Marcus was curious. The dead stayed dead, or at least, they should have.

"I'm sure Alvern would _love_ to tell you his stupid life story after this." Linda seemed annoyed.

The two finally made it to the center of the plaza. Monsters, and a few humans, gathered at the city square. The crowd grew with time, forcing Marcus to be more adept at following Linda, lest he be lost in it. A few stalls were open here and there, offering free food. Only a minority took the offer. Most of the mass stood around the square. Some groups began to form. The sun had already set, painting golds and blues over the town.

A flier on the ground read "Dragon's Heat Festival", bringing more mysteries to Marcus.

"What's this festival all about?"

"The start of the dragon mating season, obviously." Linda seemed to think that everything was common knowledge. "Usually everyone just starts fucking each other in the town square at sundown."

"But there's humans here!" Marcus looked around, worried about what would soon transpire in the town square.

"So what? Dragons are clearly too sexy for humans to resist." Linda grinned. "Well, I'm just gonna stay here for a while..." She pointed in the direction they had been walking. "Lana's palace is up ahead." Forward, Marcus could see another set of walls. In a gap was a lengthy set of stairs leading up to a white palace. "Guards are probably off duty, if you know what I mean." She gave him an implicit nudge. By the time Marcus finished gazing into the palace, a loaf of bread was stuffed in her mouth. Linda seemed unwilling to move.

"Huh? You're not gonna lead me to the palace?" Marcus had a good feeling as to why Linda preferred to stay in the square. She continued to chew on the bread. "Having sex more important than helping a student out?"

Linda choked down the loaf with alarm. A few bits of soggy bread flew out of her mouth as she coughed. "I-I'm just here for the free food!" Linda spoke between coughs. "Don't go around saying things like 'Linda fucks everyone in Klostrun', because I don't."

"Then _how_ do you deal with the dragon mating season, huh?"

Linda tensed. "Don't you have some stupid scales to pick up?" she shot back with a question of her own. A tinge of red appeared on her face as she turned her back to Marcus, presumably to enjoy another food stall.

_I guess I'm on my own…_ Marcus thought as he approached the palace stairs.

The palace, like the city, was an all-new world to Marcus. One final step put him under the roof of the residence, supported by four white columns. An orchestra of primal sounds began its performance behind him. A curious look back confirmed that Linda was indeed speaking the truth, as well as other lewd unmentionables.

Like the city entrance, the royal residence was blocked by a set of ivory gates. Unlike the entrance, the house of authority lacked a guard at the moment. Marcus wondered how he would enter the dwelling as he placed a hand on the gate. In surprise, it receded almost weightlessly. Marcus entered after large enough gap formed in the gate. The gate closed silently behind him.

The palace, like the city, was an all-new world to him. Compared to the lively city outside, the palace appeared to be dead quiet. A few remnants of sound from the city disappeared as Marcus took a few more steps into the royal house. Each footstep echoed through the halls as he explored the place in the only direction he could—forward.

The hallway was mostly dark. An occasional torch or two on the sides would ensure that Marcus wasn't walking in complete darkness. Flickering violet flames on torches spilled light on the walls and floors, giving the atmosphere an alien feeling. Something muffled his footsteps. A red carpet adorned the middle portion of the ground, going forward into the barely visible distance. Featureless doors flanked Marcus on both sides. The intimidating guard from earlier entered his thoughts. He would not dare knock on or open any of these doors. A growing feeling—that the queen was in one of these unchecked rooms—polluted his hopes.

Alvern isn't testing me on my sensory abilities, right? Marcus thought, hoping that the errand wasn't a test.

Eh? The sudden sight of an open room piqued his interest.

Just forward was a door to the left like the other ones, but open. It was impossible to miss. The bright light from inside painted a white rectangle on the hall floor. Just above the open door was an unknown golden insignia. Without the risk of disturbing anyone, Marcus peeked inside. No one was there. Curiosity got the better of him and he decided to go inside. It was a large bedroom. Gold etchings decorated the walls. A crystal chandelier on the high ceiling lit up the room considerably—in contrast to the poor lighting in the hall. A giant canopy bed was in the back of the room. Blankets were strewn about the floor. This room was for someone special.

The room's expensive décor and size of the bed confirmed that the flygon wasn't lying. A monster ruled Klostrun.

A sudden murmur from outside the room brought Marcus back to his senses. He'd best not be intruding upon a queen's royal chambers. Just a few ways forward was a circular room. Sounds of splashing came from a fountain in the center, firing a strange purple liquid into the air. A sweet scent permeated the air, identifying the liquid as some type of wine.

The smell reminded Marcus of his growing thirst. He hadn't drunk since morning. With the stalls in the town square, hunger wasn't on the list of his problems, but thirst was. Of course, he knew better than to drink wine from a fountain without its owner's permission. Given the bedroom decorations, the wine was probably beyond his wealth. He wouldn't die if he didn't drink anything until he got home, but the unpleasant feeling of dryness produced a nagging feeling in his mouth.

Encompassing the fountain were two curved stairs, both leading upstairs to the same destination: a doorway covered by a red curtain. Looking closer, he could see a draft from behind push the cloth forwards slightly. Through the slight updraft Marcus could see a large room behind. A large golden insignia featuring the same unknown symbol as before was above the doorway.

The throne room? He guessed.

As Marcus climbed the stairs, the sweet scent grew stronger. Marcus was panting after the last step. A tiny hall led up to the curtained doorway, giving him enough room to rest for a while.

Holding his breath, Marcus walked through the curtain into the throne room. A set of stained glass windows watched another set opposite to it in the room. The same violet torches from before served to make the area visible. Yet another rug was sprawled onto the floor, leading forwards towards an ivory throne. A red and white dragon levitated on it.

It seemed as if time had stopped momentarily. Upon its restart, the latias was in front of him. A smile on her face told Marcus that he was welcome in the palace, giving him a feeling of relief.

A tinge of pink covered her normally white face. A forked tongue swept away some drool on the edge of her mouth. The latias was breathing deeply, almost as if she had done something tiring recently. As she got closer, the scent from earlier grew stronger.

Something dripped from the bottom of the latias, spilling onto the floor.

"Hello…" His words trailed off, ignoring the queen's appearance and newly produced floor hazard.

_What do I call her? Queen? Your majesty…?_

_Lana._ A feminine voice answered in his head.

"...Lana?" Marcus spoke, unsure of where the sudden thought came from. _What's going on here…?_

"Everyone's surprised the first time they talk to me." The latias made no mention of her appearance. To an outsider, the sentence would seem out of place, but to Marcus, the dragon was merely responding to his inner thoughts. "Psychic types can read and project thoughts. Very useful for a queen. Now I understand you are here for some scales for Alvern, are you not?"

"O-of course!" Marcus shook off his surprise and stood composed.

"That'll be one-thousand Zel." Lana asked. Her eyes glowed purple. Marcus could feel a strange force rummaging through his pockets.

The money! He had almost forgotten about it. Marcus tried to maintain his composure, but Lana already knew, trying not to giggle at his predicament. Alvern would surely be disappointed if he were to go back to the tower without the goods he asked for.

"I don't have it." He scratched the back of his head, unsure of what to do.

"Klostrun's queen is generous, and is willing to offer you the scales for some work instead." Lana spoke professionally.

"Like what?"

"Oh…" A groan separated her response. "...just some manual labor." She grinned at him. Pink turned to red.

"I'll do whatever is needed!" Marcus spoke with confidence. He wouldn't fail his first task.

"Good." The latias closed her eyes for a moment, breathing deeply again. "I need you to look into my eyes, so I can… uhh… see if you're qualified or not! Yeah, that's it!" A nervous smile formed on her face.

"So how do I do this…? Do I jus-" Marcus looked into Lana's eyes at that exact moment. Suddenly, all the confident energy he had before seemed to be sucked away from him.

Exhausted, he fell to the floor and fell asleep. A familiar force lifted him up, pulling him in an unknown direction.

* * *

Marcus woke up in a familiar bed and room. His clothes were neatly folded on a table next to the door. An invisible force kept his hands and feet pinned away, leaving him defenseless. Turning to the side, he saw Lana, panting, with a face redder than ever. A purple glow was beneath her.

The scent was strong.

"L-let me go!" He struggled against the invisible bonds to no avail.

"You _agreed_ to helping me." Lana replied. Saliva flowed out of her mouth.

"Not like this!" Marcus screamed.

"You seem to be quite thirsty after traveling so far…" Lana moaned. More fluid dripped onto the floor. The glow below her was now gone. "How about a drink?" She smiled at her captive. Lana levitated just over Marcus, giving him a view of her nethers. The violet radiance appeared once again on her pussy, accompanied by a strong moan. The force tugged at her folds.

She was masturbating with her psychic power.

Her moans grew stronger as she continued to tease her pussy with her power. The aftermath of her sinful actions dripped down onto Marcus and the bed, staining the covers. The sudden feeling of warmth on a private part of Marcus woke him from his daze. More warm liquid landed on his crotch, before trickling down and being absorbed by the sheets. He tried to resist the mixed signals a certain lower body part was giving him.

"Aaaah!" Lana roared. Her pussy pulsed and released even more cum, some landing on his chest, and some on his face, drenching them wet. Unprepared for it, Marcus took the spray head on. Sexual fluids entered his nose and mouth and eyes. He spat out the juices. Even after rejecting the liquid, a bitter, but not unpleasant aftertaste remained in his mouth.

_Doesn't it feel good?_ Temptuous thoughts from Lana flooded his mind. _You want more, don't you? _She levitated closer to his head.

"N-no!" Marcus exclaimed loudly into the bedroom. He struggled against her invisible bonds again to no success. He could feel the warmth approaching his face. It was clear what she wanted him to do next.

_Eat up._ Lana mentally teased as she lowered herself onto his mouth. Refusing the offer, Marcus began to move his face underneath her, unaware that his actions were registering with his captor. Lana groaned again at the stimulation.

_That's the spirit!_

Disappointing Lana, Marcus stopped his motions, his head was now turned sideways on the bed. His arms and legs moved once again in a futile attempt to escape the ethereal bondage that trapped him. Purple entered his vision, and he realized what she was going to do.

She was going to force him to pleasure her.

_That's much better._

Marcus felt as if a set of invisible hands were twisting his head forward. He turned his head in the opposite motion to counter Lana's forces.

_Do that and you might snap your neck._ Linda gleefully reminded him, happy at the progress she had made.

The thought of dying stopped Marcus's resistance. The force completed its mission, and he could feel two sets of wet flesh move up against his mouth as his head shifted into position.

His mouth remained tightly shut.

"Ohhhh…" Lana growled into her paw. "I haven't felt this in a while…"

His jaws were suddenly forced open by her psychic powers. Bitter juices ran from her pussy into his mouth as she became wet again, accumulating at the end of his throat. Her eyes glowed again, and his tongue was forced upwards out of his mouth, touching the flesh of her vagina, tasting more bitterness. Lana moaned again from the contact, closing her eyes.

_How about we get started? _She whispered into his mind.

His tongue penetrated her folds, entering her pussy. He could taste bitter all over it now. Lana forced his tongue against her tight walls, coercing another moan from her. Her body moved in rhythm with her captive's tongue.

More liquid came down from the fleshy bridge that connected their bodies together. Lana shifted her weight slightly as she continued to levitate on his face, closing his nostrils. Faced with drowning, Marcus reluctantly swallowed her juices.

Marcus felt his tongue pull out of her pussy and upwards. He felt a hard nub rub against it. His tongue circled it.

"Aaah!" Lana screamed. _If you keep doing that, I'll…_

_Yeah, because I'm the one doing it._

Marcus defiantly argued back to her in his thoughts.

The sound of the door opening put a stop to her psychic abuses. Back in his control, Marcus's tongue flopped back into his mouth as he breathed a sigh of relief. His eyes shifted towards the door, eyeing a recognizable green insect dragon holding a loaf of bread.

Linda tore another chunk of bread off, taking her time to chew it as she assessed the situation. Her expression remained dull, as always. A few chews later and she swallowed the blockage in her mouth, walking a little bit closer to the connected pair on the bed.

"Lana, why are you having sex with our summoner-in-training?" Linda inquired. She looked at the loaf again, wondering if she could take another bite of it before having to answer to her friend.

"Linda, hel-" Lana pressed her pussy against Marcus's mouth again, silencing his cries for help. Without her abilities to aid her, she used her paws to keep him in check, pushing his face into her folds.

"If you must know, Lindriona, Marcus was to pay me in currency for our trade…" Lana squealed again from the stimulation, releasing more fluids into Marcus's mouth. "...unable to do so, he has decided to trade me in service instead."

Marcus once again tried to push Lana off him to reveal the truth, but she held onto his head tightly, enjoying his attempts. Aware of Linda's acquiescence, she began to grind against Marcus's face, silencing her moans with her paw.

"Want to join in?" Lana asked the flygon between moans.

"I'd rather not…" Linda began to turn towards the door.

"Saving yourself for that summoner of yours?" Lana cheekily smiled at the flygon.

"W-why the hell would I be interested in that moron?!" she froze. Red began to show up on her face. She looked at the ground, but it seemed that Lana already knew.

"If that's the case, then _surely_ you wouldn't mind if I asked him to come over tomorrow for some 'help' as well..." Lana appealed. "...would you?"

"You wouldn't dare!" she protested. She continued her movement and stormed out, shutting the door behind her. Outside, her loud footsteps dampened.

_Now, where were we?_ Lana turned her attention to the human underneath her. For the entirety of the conversation, her pussy remained pressed into Marcus's mouth, leaking fluids onto his face and below.

Lana's eyes flashed violet again, and Marcus's tongue shot back up to circle her clit. Her panting became louder as she grinded harder into his face. The bed below him creaked. Marcus began to feel the flesh against his mouth contract.

"Ohhh… Ahhh!" Her tongue flopped out of her mouth as her moans crescendoed. Cum ran down from her pussy, soaking Marcus's face. His eyes were forced shut from the flood. She continued to grind against him, making sure to press against his nose. He was forced to swallow down the foul secretions. Her motions began to stop, marking the end of her climax.

_Oh, what's this?_ Lana projected her thoughts again.

Blinded, Marcus felt Lana move away from his face, giving him a breath of fresh air. He felt something tug at his erection, forcing him to open his eyes again and look downwards.

Below, the same violet glow that had terrorized him above was now masturbating him. He tried to move his hands again to stop the source, but to no avail again. Just further down was Lana, observing his member closely as she mentally stimulated him.

Lana continued to stare at his cock. Every so often she would bring the foreskin down, before bringing it back up again, causing him to shudder in pleasure. An uneventful movement against the force that kept her servant restrained came after this.

She sped up the process, using her power to stroke him faster. She could see him struggle less and less. A little while later, some whispered moans began to come out of her captive. His eyes closed as well, shamelessly enjoying the mental massage.

Marcus was close. Each caress brought him closer and closer to release. He couldn't help it either, and began to moan loudly in front of his single audience member. He could feel his eventual release coming soon. He passed the threshold.

But nothing happened.

Marcus opened his eyes again to see his stiff member still shrouded in a purple glow at the peak of its existence being stroked into a blur. Lana gazed at him, pleased at her telekinetic abilities.

_Oh no, can't cum?_ Lana teased him in his head. _Don't worry, your queen will help you. _

Lana levitated so her pussy was lined up with his cock. Her lubricating nectar rained down on it. She slowly lowered herself down until her royal entrance touched the head of his cock. Marcus's face had a blank stare, unable to contemplate the feelings he was receiving.

In a single thrust, Lana claimed his cock inside her to the hilt. Marcus let out a surprised groan at the sudden feeling.

_Doesn't it feel good?_ She tormented him again. _It'll feel even better soon…_

The feeling was incredible. A ring of warm tight fleshy walls hugged Marcus's cock from all sides, pulsing slightly in tandem with her heartbeat. Marcus would have released from insertion had Lana not taken his ability to do so away.

Lana began to shake her waist, her eyes determined to witness her servant's reactions. Marcus moved against his invisible chains again, unable to tolerate the unsatisfying feeling of not being able to cum. Her smooth pussy rubbed his member from all sides. She took extra care to contract her vaginal muscles to enhance the pleasure, squeezing down on his cock.

She rose up, dragging his cock against her walls as it popped out of her pussy. Marcus hadn't the chance to breathe a sigh of relief when she impaled herself on his member again, making sure to continue the process again and again.

Marcus was in heaven. Lana continued to pump his cock in and out of her, massaging his cock with her walls both ways. Every so often she would take him to the hilt to gyrate her hips in a circle to maximize the pleasure. Groans became moans, which became screams as she rode her bound worker to orgasm.

Without warning, Lana slammed back down onto his cock, keeping it there. She began to twirl her sides more violently, tilting her head upwards in bliss. Her moans were joined by those of her captive's. Soft walls contracted on his member, squeezing it from every direction, desperate to complete nature's process to no avail. Cum overflowed her pussy, gushing onto the organ below her. His cock twitched in a frenzy, frantic for satisfaction as well.

Below her, Marcus's sounds became louder. Lana moved again. This time, her mouth was just above his cock, enjoying the fruitless struggles from her captive as he tried to move his shaft just a little bit closer to her awaiting mouth. Her powers kept him in place.

_You're welcome._ Lana reminded Marcus. In an instant she brought her open mouth onto his cock, bringing it in a deeply as possible. Warm walls enveloped his member as she closed her mouth into a snug fit around him, not wanting to make a mess. She then cleared the psychic block, removing her prisoner's bonds as well.

Another "Aaaah!" came out, this time not from Lana.

Marcus's body convulsed around Lana's head as his member spewed strings after strings of cum into her awaiting mouth, each of which she greedily devoured without a second thought. Her split tongue continued to lap underneath his glans, coaxing out even more seed. As his flow began to weaken, Lana took the initiative and began to suck on him, drinking every drop that remained within him. Sensing his emptiness, she wrapped her ends of her tongue around him at his base, one on each side. She then brought her tongue upwards, cleaning any residual cum—whether it was his or hers from his member, savoring the taste.

"Whoops." Lana disappointingly looked below him, realizing that the bed was soaked with her juices, making her efforts meaningless. "Servants! Your queen needs your aid!" she ordered.

Emptied and satisfied, Marcus fell asleep.

* * *

"So you_ tore_ it off? What if it gets infected?!"

"I didn't really think of that at the time..."

"Now I'll have to sterilize it…"

"Oh hell no you won't!"

Marcus awoke on top of hundreds of soft dragon scales. The haze clearing, he identified the room as the first floor to Alvern's tower. Just a little bit forward, he watched Alvern approach Linda with a bottle filled with liquid. The flygon held her tail in front of her, with both paws, backing away from the threat of burning agony.

Alvern noticed his awakening and focused his considerations on a bag on a table. In his moment of inattention, Linda overpowered him and snatched the bottle away, running upstairs to a dejected sigh from her summoner. Alvern picked up a the bag before approaching Marcus, tossing it in front of him.

"Huh? What's this?" Marcus asked, still not fully recovered from what just happened before.

"Linda said that you performed some manual labor to make up for the cost. Sorry about that." Alvern reached down to pick up a dragon scale, examining it. "So to make it up to you, I'm letting you keep this Zel for yourself."

"Thanks." Marcus's voice was weak.

"I'm guessing the work was intensive." Alvern brought the scale closer to his eye. He made a face as he sniffed the air around him. "You should probably take a shower when you get home."

"Yeah… it was," Marcus answered. Waking up slightly, he slowly got up from his makeshift bed and picked up the bag of coins, swinging it over his shoulder. Alvern helped guide him to the door. "So I'm back here on monday, right?"

"I was hoping you'd join us tomorrow actually at Klostrun's arena in the afternoon."

"Eh?!" Marcus said loudly. He couldn't imagine doing another task like that again.

"Relax, you're not gonna need to do anything." Alvern fidgeted with the scale in his hands. His face suddenly became more serious. "You'll just be there to witness Linda's defeat at the hands of me in the arena!" he boasted.

Laughter came from upstairs.

"I'll think about it."


End file.
